Ultra-Small Plutonium Oxide Nanocrystals: An Innovative Material in Plutonium Science

Apart from its sensitive technological importance, plutonium (Pu) is also one of the most intriguing elements because of its non-conventional physical properties and fascinating chemistry. Those fundamental aspects are particularly interesting when dealing with the challenging study of plutonium-based nanomaterials. Here we show that ultra-small (3.2 0.9 nm) and highly crystalline plutonium oxide (PuO2) nanocrystals (NCs) can be synthesized by the thermal decomposition of plutonyl nitrate (PuO2(NO3)2*3H2O) in a highly coordinating organic medium. This is the first example reporting on the preparation, in a controllable and reproducible manner, of significant quantities (several tens of milligrams) of PuO2 NCs. In addition, a whole set of data (based on various and complementary techniques) related to the structural characterization and magnetic properties of PuO2 NCs is reported. The current NCs constitute innovative fundamental building-blocks for the study of challenging problems as diverse as the transport of plutonium into the environment or the size and shape effects on the physics of transuranium elements.JRC.E.4-Nuclear Fuel Safet